Neck and shoulder drape

ABSTRACT

A drape for protecting the neck and shoulders during hair styling, cutting, shampooing, and the like includes a generally U-shaped flat bib portion and a U-shaped collar portion which extends upwardly from the bib portion. The bib portion includes curved outer and inner peripheries, the inner periphery providing a neck opening. A pair of slits extend inwardly from the outer periphery toward the center of the neck opening, and a collar portion is attached to the periphery of the neck opening. The slits form an included angle of less than 180* so that when the drape is placed over the shoulders and around the neck of the wearer and the ends of the bib and the collar are drawn into overlapping relationship, the slits extend toward each other and overlie the shoulders. The slits thereby prevent gathering or bunching of the drape, and the overlapped collar and bib provide complete protection to the neck and adjacent portions of the chest and back. A waterproof cape can be placed over the bib and secured around the neck if desired, and the collar portion completely protects the neck from the cape.

United States Patent 91 Daniel 1 1 NECK AND SHOULDER DRAPE Leopold S.Daniel, 542 S. Cuylcr. Oak Park, 111. 60304 [22] Filed: May 1, 1973 [21]Appl. N0.: 356,149

[76] inventor:

Primary xaminerAlfred R. Guest Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Dawson, Tilton,Fallon & Lungmus 1 Mar. 26, 1974 [57] ABSTRACT neck opening. A pair ofslits extend inwardly from the outer periphery toward the center of theneck opening, and a collar portion is attached to the periphery of theneck opening. The slits form an included angle of less than 180 so thatwhen the drape is placed over the shoulders and around the neck of thewearer and the ends of the bib and the collar are drawn into overlappingrelationship, the slits extend toward each other and overlie theshoulders. The slits thereby prevent gathering or bunching of the drape,and the overlapped collar and bib provide complete protection to theneck and adjacent portions of the chest and back. A waterproof cape canbe placed over the bib and se cured around the neck if desired, and thecollar portion completely protects the neck from the cape.

8 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures NECK AND SHOULDER DRAPE BACKGROUND Thisinvention relates to a protective drape for use in beauty shops, barbershops, hair styling shops, and the like.

When a persons hair is styled, cut, or washed, it is desirable toprotect the persons clothes by securing a cape around his or her neck.The cape may advantageously be formed of plastic or other water proof orwater resistant material, particularly when the hair is being washed orbleached. When using such a cape, it is not uncommon for the beauticianor barber to secure a protective collar or band formed of tissue paperor the like around the persons neck before securing the cape in order toprovide a relatively tight fit between the cape and the neck and toprevent the cape from chafing the neck. However, when shampoo, bleachhair setting preparations, or other fluids are used, paper collars canlose their integrity or might not provide sufficient absorbence toprevent leaking of the fluid past the collar.

If the collar extends only around the neck of the person, sufficientprotection might not be provided for the shoulders, back, and chest.However, if the material of the collar is extended downwardly to coverthe shoulders, back, and chest, the material usually gathers or bunchesaround the neck or shoulders because of the contour of the shoulders.Such gathering or bunching can interfere with the styling or setting ofthe hair, particularly around the back of the neck.

SUMMARY The inventive drape provides complete protection for the neck,shoulders, and chest of the wearer, and the slits which extend inwardlyfrom the outer periphery of the drape toward the neck opening overliethe shoulders when the end portions of the drape are overlapped at theback of the neck to permit the drape to conform to the wearers body sothat gathering or bunching of the drape is eliminated. The collarportion extends upwardly from the flat bib portion and can be drawntightly yet comfortably around the neck. The collar portion is alsooverlapped at the back of the neck, and a plastic cape can be securedaround the collar portion so that the cape can be fitted relativelysnugly about the neck without contacting the neck. The drape can be madeof terry cloth to provide comfort and good absorbence to minimize thepossibility that bleach, shampoo, and other fluids will leak past thecollar portion to contact the wearers clothes. If it is desired to usethe drape without a protective outer cape, the drape itself can beprovided with a water resistant or waterproof outer liner.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The invention will be explained inconjunction with an illustrative embodiment shown in the accompanyingdrawing, in which FIG. 1 is a front perspective view ofa person wearinga drape formed in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of a person wearing the drape;

FIG. 3 is a rear view of a person wearing the drape;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the drape; and

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the drape.

DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIGS. 4 and 5, thenumeral 10 designates generally a drape which comprises a flat, U-shaped bib portion 11 and an upstanding collar portion 12 which extendsupwardly substantially perpendicularly to the bib portion 11 and whichsurrounds a neck opening 13.

The bib portion includes an outer periphery 14, a pair of endperipheries 15 which extend laterally inwardly from the outer periphery,and an inner periphery 16 to which the collar portion 12 is attached andwhich defines the neck opening 13. The outer periphery 14 includes aforward arcuate or curved portion 17 which extends over an arc of about180 and a pair of rearwardly extending portions 18 which extendsubstantially straight and substantially parallel. The periphery of thebib portion is illustrated as being somewhat irregular to indicate thenature of the material from which the drape is formed, which mayadvantageously be terry cloth or other absorbent material, but it willbe understood that the material from which the drape is formed can becut along linear and curvilinear lines to provide the periphery of thedrape. The inner periphery 16 similarly includes a forward arcuate orcurved portion 19 which extends generally concentrically with the curvedouter periphery 17 along an arc of about 180 and a pair of straightrearwardly extending parallel portions 20 which extend generallyparallel to the rearward outer peripheral portions 18. The endperipheries 15 extend generally perpendicularly between the inner andouter straight peripheral portions 16 and 18.

The collar portion 12 can be formed from a flat strip of the samematerial from which the bib portion is formed and is then secured, as bystitching, to the inner periphery 16 of the bib portion so that thecollar portion can extend straight upwardly when the bib portion liesflat as shown in FIG. 4. Since the collar portion is formed separatelyfrom the bib portion and is thereafter secured to the bib portion, thecollar portion can extend perpendicularly to the flat bib portionwithout causing gathering or bunching of the bib portion.

A pair of slits 21 and 22 extend inwardly from the curved portion of theouter periphery of the bib toward the neck opening. The slitsadvantageously extend generally toward the center about which the curvedforward periphery 19 of the neck opening extends, and the slits extendfor about A to of the distance between the curved outer periphery l7 andthe curved inner periphery 19. The slits form an included angle of lessthan 180, and the included angle in the specific embodiment illustratedis about As will be explained hereinafter, the included angle can varydepending upon the size of the intended wearer of the drape, but theincluded angle is preferably between about 90 and about Although theslits 21 and 22 are shown as being defined by a separation betweenadjacent portions of the bib, this is for purposes of illustration. Theslits are formed by slitting the material of the bib so that the edgesof each slit lie adjacent each other when the bib lies flat. After theslits are formed, the edges of the slits can be reinforced by stitching,as can the peripheries l4 and 15 of the bib.

The use of the drape is illustrated in FIG. l-3. Although the drape willbe explained as being worn by a woman, it will be understood that thedrape can also be used in mens barber shops and hair styling shops. Thedrape is placed around the neck of a woman W who is having her hairbleached, set, or the like so that the forward portion of the bibextends downwardly over the chest of the woman. The end portions of thebib and the collar are brought'together behind the woman intooverlapping relationship as shown in FIG. 3 so that the collarcompletely surrounds the neck and adjacent portions of the bibcompletely cover the upper portion of the back. The drape may be securedin this position by a pin indicated at 23.

The included angle between the slits 21 and 22 and the relative sizes ofthe womans neck and the neck opening 13 are such that when the endportions of the collar and bib are brought into overlappingrelationship, the slits will form an included angle of about 180 andwill overlie the shoulders of the wearer. The slits therefore permit theportion of the bib in front of the slits to conform to the shape of thewearers shoulders and chest and permit the portion of the bib behind theslits to conform to the shoulders and back of the wearer. Accordingly,the portion of the bib around the neck opening lies substantially flataround the neck of the wearer without gathering or bunching, and thecollar extends substantially straight up along the neck.

This permits the hair around the neck to be styled without interferencefrom the collar portion or the bib portion.

The drape may be used alone when the hair is being styled or cut, butwhen fluids are being applied to the hair, a protective cape 24 shown inFIG. 2 can be secured around the neck to overlie the bib and to protectthe wearers clothes. The cape can be formed of plastic or other suitablewater resistant or waterproof material. The neck portion 25 of the capeis secured around the collar portion of the drape and is maintainedthereby out of contact with the wearers neck. The soft collar 12 extendsupwardly beyond the neck opening of the cape and protects the neck frombeing chafed by the cape. The collar of the drape provides a good sealbetween the neck opening of the cape and the neck of the wearer tominimize the possibility that fluids can leak past the neck opening ofthe cape to contact the wearers clothes.

While I prefer forming the drape from terry cloth, which is quiteabsorbent and provides a soft, comfortable feeling, the drape can beformed from other absorbent material, such as soft paper. Paper drapesmay be particularly suitable for use with men, and can be disposed ofafter each use if desired.

lf fluid protection is desired without the necessity of using theplastic cape 24, the drape can be provided with a liner which is securedto the outer surface thereof. The liner can be formed of plastic orother water resistant or waterproof material.

in one specific embodiment of the invention, the drape had an overalllength from one straight portion 18 to the other straight portion 18 of24 inches, and an overall width from the rear edge 15 to the front ofthe bib of 16% inches. The rear edges 15 were each 9 inches long, andthe width of the neck opening between the rear edges was 6 inches. Thelength of the straight edge portions 18 was 8 /4 inches. The curvedportion 19 of the neck opening extended generally along an are having aradius of about 2% inch, and the radius of the are along which thecurved outer periphery 17 extended was about iii 4 inches, providing thebib portion with a radial dimension of 9 inches between the concentricperipheries l7 and 19. Each of the slits 21 and 22 extended inwardly forabout 4% inches, but the length of the slits could be increased up toabout /3 of the distance between the curved inner and outer peripheries.

The size of the neck opening and the position of the slits around thecurved outer periphery can be varied depending upon the neck size of thewearer, and a particular beauty shop might stock several sizes toaccomodate persons of different sizes. Although i have described thedrape as being provided with two slits, more slits may be provided ifdesired at other locations along the periphery of the bib.

While in the foregoing specification a detailed description of aspecific embodiment of the invention was set forth for the purpose ofillustration, it is to be understood that many of the details hereingiven may be varied considerably by those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A drape adapted to be worn over the shoulders and surrounding theneck comprising a flat bib portion having an outer periphery, a pair ofend portions, and a neck opening extending inwardly from the endportions, the bib portion having at least a pair of slits extendinginwardly from spaced locations along the outer periphery toward the neckopening, the slits forming an included angie of less than 180 and beingpositioned so that they overlie the shoulders of a wearer when the endportions are overlapped around the neck of the wearer to close the neckopening, and a collar portion secured to the bib portion around the neckopening, the collar portion extending generally perpendicularly to theplane of the bib portion, the collar portion having a pair of endsadjacent the end portions of the bib portion which overlap when the endportions of the bib are overlapped whereby the collar portion maycompletely surround the neck of a wearer and a protective covering canbe positioned around the collar portion without touching the wearersneck.

2. The drape of claim 1 in which the outer periphery of the bib portionincludes a curved portion.

3. The bib of claim 1 in which the slits form an included angle of about90 to about 130.

4. The drape of claim 1 in which the slits extend inwardly from theouter periphery toward the neck portion for about A to about i i of thedistance between the outer periphery and the neck portion.

5. The drape of claim 1 in which the drape is formed of terry cloth.

6. The drape of claim 1 in which the bib portion is generally U-shaped,the outer periphery including a curved forward position extending alongan arc of about 180 and a pair of generally parallel generally straightportions extending rearwardly from the curved forward portion, the neckopening including a curved forward peripheral portion extending along anarc of about l and a pair of generally straight and generally parallelrearwardly extending portions, the end portions of the bib portionextending generally transversely between the rearwardly extendingportion of the outer periphery and the neck opening.

7. The drape of claim 6 in which the slits extend inwardly from thecurved portion of the outer periphery toward the center of the neckopening for about k to about 94 of the distance between the curvedportion of the outer periphery and the curved periphery of the neckopening.

8. The drape of claim 7 in which the slits form an included angle ofabout to about i i t

1. A drape adapted to be worn over the shoulders and surrounding theneck comprising a flat bib portion having an outer periphery, a pair ofend portions, and a neck opening extending inwardly from the endportions, the bib portion having at least a pair of slits extendinginwardly from spaced locations along the outer periphery toward the neckopening, the slits forming an included angle of less than 180* and beingpositioned so that they overlie the shoulders of a wearer when the endportions are overlapped around the neck of the wearer to close the neckopening, and a collar portion secured to the bib portion around the neckopening, the collar portion extending generally perpendicularly to theplane of the bib portion, the collar portion having a pair of endsadjacent the end portions of the bib portion which overlap when the endportions of the bib are overlapped whereby the collar portion maycompletely surround the neck of a wearer and a protective covering canbe positioned around the collar portion without touching the wearer''sneck.
 2. The drape of claim 1 in which the outer periphery of the bibportion includes a curved portion.
 3. The bib of claim 1 in which theslits form an included angle of about 90* to about 130*.
 4. The drape ofclaim 1 in which the slits extend inwardly from the outer peripherytoward the neck portion for about 1/2 to about 3/4 of the distancebetween the outer periphery and the neck portion.
 5. The drape of claim1 in which the drape is formed of terry cloth.
 6. The drape of claim 1in which the bib portion is generally U-shaped, the outer peripheryincluding a curved forward position extending along an arc of about 180*and a pair of generally parallel generally straight portions extendingrearwardly from the curved forward portion, the neck opening including acurved forward peripheral portion extending along an arc of about 180*and a pair of generally straight and generally parallel rearwardlyextending portions, the end portions of the bib portion extendinggenerally transversely between the rearwardly extending portion of theouter periphery and the neck opening.
 7. The drape of claim 6 in whichthe slits extend inwardly from the curved portion of the outer peripherytoward the center of the neck opening for about 1/2 to about 3/4 of thedistance between the curved portion of the outer periphery and thecurved periphery of the neck opening.
 8. The drape of claim 7 in whichthe slits form an included angle of about 90* to about 130*.